Shem
Shem’s Polytheism Shemite Religion
The Shemite religion is polytheistic and largely based on fertility and fate. Originally, the animistic religion was a combination of nature and tribal religion with literal deities. Shemite’s original religion was a nature religion because of the importance of herds and their fertility; the sun, the moon and the stars were their gods. Things natural and non-living, such as mountains, were considered to be imbued with divine energy. Humans, especially the Sons of Shem, were caretakers of the world under the watchful eyes of the gods. Their original religion was also tribal in that the Sons of Shem did not set out to convert others – one was either of the tribe and part of the religion or one was not a Son of Shem and thus not ‘chosen’. This early form of Shemite religion gave them a cosmology and a cosmogony – the structure and origin of the world and the place of humans in it. The Sons of Shem may have originated somewhere mountainous where their gods lived on high mountain tops. For shrouded reasons, they were forced to leave their homeland. This exodus also changed the nature of their religion. With their movement to the plains and deserts of Shem they no longer had great mountains to worship upon, so they erected artificial mountains known as zikkurats. With the construction of the zikkurats, the basic nature religion became more sacramental. Further sacraments were added to the religion, such as sacred prostitutes, who were believed to become living hosts for the divine when they were performing their erotic arts. Statues of the gods were seen as dwellings or manifestations of the gods. These sacraments and rites were created to impress upon the Sons of Shem their obligations toward the gods. Driven from their homelands and into barren wastes, conquered by Stygians and forced to fight daily against the elements for their very lives, their religion had to evolve to explain the harshness of the Shemite’s lives. Thus the nature aspect of the religion turned prophetic. A priestly caste developed to guide and warn the Sons of Shem. The priests and healers of modern Shem still reflect this new stage. The priests do not interpret past revelations but instead receive new and ongoing revelations. Society and action are manifestations of divine will. If good things are happening, the gods are pleased. If bad events are occurring, then divine anger and retribution is observed. The priests must
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then reveal what the gods want from man to fix society. Correct behaviour is emphasised over correct belief, giving rise to the almost universal acceptance of codes of honour among the Shemites. Thus, the natural tribal religion became a primarily prophetic religion with sacramental aspects and a few vestigial tribal traits.
Predestination & Sin Shem’s priests teach dire concepts of predestination, resulting in fatalism among the Shemites, who believe that if their day to die arrives, there is nothing they can do to change it. The sons of Shem do not struggle against fates regarded as inevitable. The eastern Shemites, in particular, pay homage to Fate, and several of their gods and goddesses are deities of fate and destiny. The Shemites also believe in a just afterlife, a type of resurrection or reincarnation. The souls of evil men, according to the Shemites, are imprisoned in the bodies of apes as punishment for their wickedness. Shemite religion offers an explanation for hardship and misfortune – acts displeasing to their gods cause the gods to send forth demons to afflict the offender, his family or even his city, depending on the severity of the sin. These demons bring about disease, plagues, madness, enemy conquerors, infant mortality, environmental disasters and monsters. The gods have good intentions and have given the Shemites all that they have, but they also have great powers and are not above demonstrating those powers when riled. All are born with the capability to displease the gods, so the Shemites teach that when one suffers one should not curse the gods, but glorify them in attempts to atone for the displeasing act and to appeal to their better nature in order to receive deliverance. Thus the Shemite emphasis of correct behaviour over correct belief is displayed. Behave correctly or the gods shall smite the sinner, regardless of his belief. Should the god choose to smite, one could only pray and/or bear it. Meadow Shemites pray with their hands clasped across their chests and with the hopes that their gods will have pity and mercy. Unlike the gods of the Cimmerians, the Shemite gods supposedly respond to prayer, worship and sacrifice. Indeed, the very vitality, fertility and prosperity of the sons of Shem, collectively and individually, depend on said ceremonies. The gods control past and future, as well as all natural events. The anger of the gods is expressed in tidal waves, drought, earthquakes and other natural disasters. The gods hold human
